ground turkey

The original recipe for this southwestern turkey salad came from a cookbook called Today’s Turkey Favorites which we sent away for in 1990. This book was only thirty-five pages long, but it contained a number of good recipes. “Today” is always a relative term because the original recipe is now nearly thirty years old. However, with a few little additions, this recipe is better than ever!

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Southwestern Turkey Salad

This is a colorful way to create a turkey salad without using lettuce or tomato. It's very tasty and can be modified to be "hotter" very easily by modifying the spices or using a different salsa.

Bring a pot containing 4 qt. water to a boil. This will be used to blanch the zucchini. If the water comes to a full boil before you're ready to blanch the zucchini, just turn the heat off and leave a lid on the pot.

Heat a large skillet over medium heat. When the skillet is hot, add the olive oil. When the oil is shimmering, add the turkey and cook until turkey is barely pink. Add the chili powder, lime juice, taco seasoning and stir together well and cook until turkey is no longer pink.

Add the salsa and simmer the turkey mixture for 5 minutes. While the turkey mixture is simmering, it's a good time to slice the avocado.

When the turkey has about a minute to go, blanch the zucchini by putting the slices in boiling water for about a minute. Drain the zucchini and place zucchini slices in a circle on a plate.

Spoon the turkey mixture on top of the zucchini, top with avocado slices and cheddar cheese. Serve with tortilla chips.

Recipe Notes

I like to get my prep work done in advance. This sometimes means I wind up with more dishes to do, but it relieves so much stress while you're in the "assembly phase". When we make this, we make individual plates, but you could make one large plate if you prefer.

Use this spaghetti and meatballs recipe over your favorite pasta. We use a gluten-free pasta, but whatever you prefer will come out well. Prepare the pasta according to the package directions, unless you are extremely adventurous (or skilled) and are making your own! The longer the sauce simmers, the better it gets.

Want to try “spaghetti” without the pasta? Cook up a spaghetti squash and use that in place of the pasta.

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Spaghetti and Meatballs

This spaghetti and meatballs recipe is sure to be a hit with any spaghetti lovers. The meatballs are more work than a meat sauce, but they are well worth the effort! Plus, this recipe has no added salt, so for those on a low -sodium diet, it works well. You can easily make this recipe gluten-free by using gluten-free bread crumbs.

When onions are soft, combine the rest of the sauce ingredients over medium heat. Stir occasionally and then simmer on low for at least one hour.

Meatballs

In a large bowl, combine all meatball ingredients except oil

Heat oil in large skillet.

Roll meatballs by taking a small amount of meat and rolling between your palms. A good size is about the size of a golf ball. Add this batch of meatballs to oil. Turn regularly to avoid having them flatten. Brown on all sides.

When all meatballs have been browned, add them to the sauce to continue cooking.